Ron closed his brown eyes, watching the tale as it was unfolded to him.
"I came to this world a few thousand years ago, completing a prophecy heralding eternal peace when I would be forever lost in the final apocalypse. Turns out you don't have to die to do it.
"Your world was still the warrior's age, and I was born of a magical warrior race. What you'd call werewolves. Many took me for a monster, and they had good cause at times. With nothing better to do, I traveled the lands. I made many friends, some enemies, and learned what martial training I could find. Europe taught me various battle strategies, nuances of swordsmanship I hadn't seen, and barroom brawling. That was an experience.
"After a while, I found myself in Asia. There, I found a cornucopia of styles. What most intrigued me was the spiritual nature that went with it. It was not religious like European fighting, but honor and philosophy tempered it. I excelled at learning the styles, though the philosophy eluded me for the longest time. To my people, fighting is just an aspect of nature and survival, a throwback to our wolf ancestry.
"I had traveled through Korea, Taiwan, and Japan before I made it to China. It was here I found the varied but connected styles of kung fu. Here, again, I excelled at learning the styles. All save one. Monkey kung fu was too acrobatic for me and seemed juvenile. I knew it was about attacking from unexpected positions and confusing the opponent with strange antics. I always like to know an art in case I have to fight it. Fortunately, a young monk helped me to learn the moves though I could not use the art myself.
"The monk came to know me and my nature, and he asked of me one favor. He feared the secret artifact of his order, the Jade Monkeys, would be used again if a war broke out. While they bestowed knowledge, they did not bestow wisdom. History had shown armies created with the power were corrupted by it. I was to take the artifacts and scatter them across the world. While I did this, he took the style to Japan to create a school where he would teach it as ninjutsu. To keep the original history from being discovered, he changed the history of the art and altered various key moves and philosophies, as well as eliminating all references to the Monkeys. Some students followed the monk because they believed in his concerns. Those that remained in China proceeded to add to the style until it became more kung fu with animal attacks than true monkey kung fu.
"Then, about eighty years ago, I thought I'd check on how the school was going. I never had to go past the village at the foot of the mountain. It was there I happened across a group of bullies converging on a smaller child. Before they could do anything, another young boy jumped one of the bullies. This allowed the child to escape while the bullies took care of the interloper. Everyone was equally injured before the bullies finally gave up. I checked on the young boy to find him grinning; his only concern was the child's safety.
"I took him to my hotel room to tend his scraps. While there, I learned he was studying at Yamanouchi, but he was having difficulties with his techniques. He was very intelligent and inquisitive, though. I took a quick liking to him.
"Over the next month, I helped him to learn the techniques he was having difficulty with, and he helped me to understand the spiritual aspect through our various discussions. I continued my journeys, content with the school's status. I later learned that the young man improved so much, he became the Sensei of the school."
Ron came out of his daze with a shake of his head. "Wow. Dude, you are ancient."
Jonathon laughed heartily. "That I am. And it has been a rich eternity filled with good friends and many chances to help others achieve their destinies."
"So, you've known Sensei that long?"
"Yes, which is how I knew what to expect with you. He said you'd be like he was back then."
"And all those questions you asked were to see if I'd use the monkey power wisely," Ron said hesitantly. "You've gone through so much, you knew that only someone that didn't want the power would use it right."
"Exactly. You want it to protect those close to you. It's easier to keep sight of your ideals if you are fighting for those you care about. It is far too easy to become corrupted when all you see is the glory and honor. It's a heavy burden. Sensei wishes you didn't have the power for this reason. He cares for you as a son and would rather bear it all for you."
The young blonde looked at his hands with a somber expression.
The large man patted the boy on the back as he stood. "Let's make sure those shoulders are strong enough to carry the world. We'll start with the basic blocks, stances, and attacks. You already have the form, so focus on feeling the power course through your technique."
Ron jumped up to take his position and took a breath to focus himself as he started his training. He knew it was going to be a lot of work, but it felt good to be excited about it. There was newfound hope for the future. He might still play the buffoon, but he'd be kicking butt doing it.